Hear from Students | Cornell Executive Master of Public Administration (EMPA)

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[Mary] So I looked at aÊvariety of different programs,ÊÊ
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but I always came back to the Master's in Public Administration and CornellÊÊ
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was especially attractive to me because it hadÊworld class faculty, it was a hybrid approach,ÊÊ
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and given where I am in my career and how my lifeÊhas progressed, it made sense for where I am.
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[Delise] This program is geared toward workingÊprofessionals. So this is the perfect programÊÊ
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for me, right? Because as an agent, you know,Ê you're always, you're not always in the office,ÊÊ
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sometimes you're out in the field. So thatÊlevel of flexibility has to be there. AndÊÊ
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of course, you want to work with professors whoÊunderstand that your job can take you anywhere.
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[Anna] Cornell specifically had a programÊthat really spoke to me. Specifically,ÊÊ
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the idea that solving problems, solving largeÊpublic problems, really will require nonprofit,ÊÊ
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private, and public leadership. AndÊso that felt very realistic to me.
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[Mary] This program has really propelled me toÊthink more globally and to really make me respondÊÊ
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as a global citizen. I don't think that anyone isÊmeant to be a bystander in life. This program isÊÊ
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meant for people who want to be participants.Ê And that I think is the most impactful thing,ÊÊ
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is that every one of these professors remindsÊyou how important it is, each and every oneÊÊ
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of us and our perspectives and our thoughts, on crafting a more robust global citizenship.
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[Anna] I actually had some pretty high expectations, just because the universityÊÊ
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has such a stellar reputation. It definitelyÊexceeded my expectations. The faculty isÊÊ
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outstanding. They're some of the leaders in their field. Some of the subjects that we are learning,ÊÊ
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they're the luminaries of those subjects. It'sÊbeen tremendous working with the professors.
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[Mary] I think that's part of the drawÊof coming to a school like Cornell isÊÊ
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it's bringing in the best and brightest from around the country and the world. The mostÊÊ
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valuable aspect is the people. It's been one exceptional experience after another,ÊÊ
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and these are relationships that I think I'll carry for a lifetime.
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[Delise] I've been able to lean on my classmates in ways that I never imagined that I would beÊÊ
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able to, and being that we come from all walks ofÊlife, right, we all have these different positionsÊÊ
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and jobs that we do, it's been amazing toÊsit in the classroom and learn from them,ÊÊ
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right. It's a different perspective to someÊof the same things that I'm dealing with,ÊÊ
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so being able to really build those relationships has been invaluable for me.
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[Anna] This program definitely has helped me grow and gain confidence as a leader. SoÊÊ
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my advice for folks who are considering thisÊprogram is if you are looking for a premierÊÊ
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institution to learn about public administration, I don't think you can do better than Cornell.
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[Delise] It's the knowledge, it's what you're learning that is the difference when you sitÊÊ
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at the table. That's really what it is.Ê I'm bringing another level of informationÊÊ
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and that's what really makes me different from everybody else. When you're sitting down thereÊÊ
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talking about academia and what the data shows and, what statistics are talking about and how we needÊÊ
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to move forward, you know, how we are going to change, how are we gonna keep the mission going,ÊÊ
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you know, having this degree, having that level of research and expertise,ÊÊ
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that academic expertise is valuable.Ê And it's needed in the conversation.